How to Get Pregnant Using Natural Family Planning
Natural family planning, also known as fertility awareness, is a method of birth control in which neither partner uses artificial means to prevent pregnancy. By monitoring your fertile days, you know when to refrain from sexual intercourse. And, natural family planning methods can also help you conceive a child when you're ready. Using a combination of calendar tracking, cervical-mucus testing and body-temperature charting, you identify the days on which you are most likely to conceive and have sex on those days instead of abstaining.
Things You'll Need
- Calendar
- Basal thermometer
Instructions
Calendar Method
Chart your menstrual cycle for at least three months -- preferably eight to 12 months -- to determine an average. Record the first and last days of your periods on a calendar. Subtract 18 days from the number of days in your shortest cycle to determine the first day on which you are fertile. For example, if your shortest cycle was 28 days, the first day of your window of fertility would be the 10th day after your period begins. Subtract 11 days from your longest cycle to determine the last day of your window of fertility. For example, if your longest cycle was 31 days, the 20th day of your cycle is the last day on which you are likely to ovulate and conceive. Basal Thermometer Method
Take your temperature first thing every morning, before you get out of bed, using a basal thermometer. Basal thermometers are more sensitive than regular ones, allowing you to detect the very slight difference in your body temperature before and after ovulation. Chart your temperature on a calendar for at least three menstrual cycles. Record when your temperature falls by 0.4 to 1 degree Fahrenheit, which often happens just before ovulation. Record when your temperature rises by 0.4 to 1 degree Fahrenheit, which often happens just after ovulation. The time between the decrease and increase in body temperature is when you are most likely to conceive. Cervical Mucus Method
Wipe the opening of your vagina with your fingers every morning before urinating, on the days you are not menstruating. Record the feeling, color and consistency of the mucus on a calendar. The mucus will be yellow or white, clear or cloudy, thick or thin, sticky or slippery. You may also find that there is no mucus at all on some days. Track the days on which the mucus is the most colorless and slippery, and exhibits the most stretch between your fingers. These are the days on which you are most likely ovulating. Continue tracking for at least three menstrual cycles to determine the most accurate window of conception.
